What Is The Meaning Of Life?
This is a question that has been asked since humans first becameĀ conscious intelligent beings. It is arguably the most powerful questionĀ in philosophy, and the one that no agreed upon answer. Different philosophers, scientists and historians have all attempted to give their spin to answer the question āwhat is the meaning of life?ā.Ā I am going to examine some of these ideas, break downĀ the question into smaller pieces, and articulate my own response which has formulated over the past 8 years of my existential dread to figure it out and live my life optimally.
- *Before we begin this journey, we must first define two important and relevant terms; the concepts ālifeā and āmeaningā.**
Letās first look at three definitions for the word ālifeā:
1. The condition that distinguishes animals and plantsĀ from inorganic matter, including the capacity for growth, reproduction,Ā functional activity, and continual change preceding death.
2. The existence of an individual human being or animal.
3. The period between the birth and death of a living thing, especially a human being.
Letās now look at three definitions for the word āmeaningā:
1. What is meant by a concept?
2. What is the significance of a concept?
3. What is the important or worthwhile quality of a concept?
- *Now that we have defined both concepts, letās break things down even further.**
When we are asking āwhat is the meaning of life?ā, we are essentially asking the following 3 questions:
1. What is life?
2. What is lifeās significance?
3. How does one live life in the best possible manner?
After having answered these questions, we will be able to synthesizeĀ all of our ideas and create a response to the question that is theĀ subject of this article.
- *What is life?**
As mentioned earlier, life is the condition that distinguishesĀ animals and plants from inorganic matter, including the capacity forĀ growth, reproduction, functional activity, and continual changeĀ preceding death.
- *How did it all get started?**
Many scientists believe that chemical reactions led to RNA, which wasĀ the first molecule on Earth to self-replicate and begin the process ofĀ evolution that led to more advanced forms of life, and over billions of years led to the human being (and you right now).
Humans (homo Sapiens) evolved from a species known as Homo erectus. Everything changed during the cognitive revolution that occurred between 30,000 to 70,000 years ago.
It is thanks to the cognitive revolution that we are the dominant, intelligent and conscious beings that we know ourselves to be today, and it is thanks to our consciousness that we are able to askĀ questions such as āwhat is the meaning of life?ā.
And thatās not the only deep question we came up with.
Are we special? Are we the only intelligent and conscious entities inĀ the universe or in the multiverse? Is anything ārealā, or are we living in a simulation? Does God exist? Is there life after death? How do allĀ of the complexities of the Universe work? Is there a deeper purpose to life or are we merely just bodies of carbon living in a world that is random and does not care about us?
These questions are big and grand and scary because they have no direct way to answer them. Science can only answer so much.
We can only take what we understand about life, about existence and about the Universe and give it our best.
After all, the way your world is really created is truly a mystery.
So us being the smart ole homo sapien can come up with some clever tricks to make these big scary questions make sense. We can accept our ābest answer so farā so we can move on and focus on what we CAN do, and what we CAN figure out. And we can take in every possible scenario of how reality works and come up with strong opinions that are loosely held.
Are we special?
If it makes you feel better to believe you are, believe it, if it makes you feel better to believe we arnt, believe that.
Are we the only intelligent and conscious entities in the universe or in the multiverse?
Believer whichever makes you more excited, but stay open to being wrong.
Is anything ārealā, or are we living in a simulation?
Again, whatever makes you feel better, but come to terms with the possibility of the other choice being true.
Does God exist?
Is there life after death?
How do allĀ of the complexities of the Universe work?
Is there a deeper purpose to life or are we merely just bodies of carbon living in a world that is random and does not care about us?
The progress that we have madeĀ in the last few hundred years has been remarkable. With every year thatĀ passes, we understand a little bit more about the Universe and aboutĀ ourselves.
We are curious beings and we are wired to want to explore, to askĀ questions, and to try to find answers to the mysteries of the world.
- *What is lifeās significance?**
We do not know whether we are merely just bodies ofĀ carbon living in a vast apathetic and random Universe, or whether thereĀ is a deeper purpose to our lives and to our existence. With that beingĀ said, life is still meaningful and significant based on the fact that without it, no one would be able to experience or interpret the very existence of the universe itself.
Similar to how machines and robots are wired to think and behave inĀ certain ways, human beings are wired to want and desire certain things.Ā If there is one thing I want to emphasize, itās thatĀ while technology and culture have progressed drastically over the lastĀ 100 years, we still have the same desires that we had thousands of yearsĀ ago and we have not changed much biologically over that time span. TheĀ difference between today and two thousand years ago is that we areĀ now satisfying our desires and needs in newer and more complex ways.
- *Physical survival.**
Survival is the deepest and most important instinct that we have. AsĀ mentioned earlier in this article, for most of our species history weĀ were somewhere in the middle of the animal food chain. Without goodĀ health and a good environment, life is difficult and filled withĀ suffering. No baby is born ready to give up and commit suicide. It takesĀ a process full of corruption and suffering for a human being to get toĀ that point. Humans and animals are wired to want to live. As AbrahamĀ Maslow points out in his hierarchy of needs, physiological and safetyĀ needs are the foundation of his pyramid.
While physical survival used to be the act of running from a tiger orĀ getting shelter in a cave, physical survival today in the western worldĀ is eating healthy, making money, investing, going to the gym, attainingĀ influence and power, sleeping well, etc.
- *Reproduction.**
Reproduction is survival in a different form; survival of our genesĀ and of our specie. We are wired to want to procreate. Evolution made theĀ act of sex enjoyable. Our desire for reproduction has not changed.Ā Whatās changed is that as a result of newer technologies, safety andĀ security, and world dominance, people realize that taking care ofĀ children is a time-consuming lifestyle and choose to focus on theirĀ other needs and goals first, keeping their desire for children asĀ something to explore later in their lives. Thanks to technologicalĀ advancements such as birth control and abortion, people have moreĀ control over their lives and are able to enjoy the benefits of sexĀ without its consequences.
- *Belongingness and Love.**
Humans beings are social animals. We are not meant to live inĀ isolation. In large part, the way we learn, understand ourselves and theĀ world, maintain our health and sanity, and think about and solveĀ problems is by communicating and cooperating with others. There is aĀ concept that is known as Dunbarās number. It is essentially a claim thatĀ humans can maintain no more than 150 friendships and connections at aĀ time. Yuval Noah Harariās talks about this in detail in his bookĀ āSapiensā.
Yuval went on to explain that the reason we are able to cooperate inĀ large groups and dominate the world despite our cognitive limit to theĀ number of people with whom we can maintain stable social relationships,Ā is because of our ability to connect around shares beliefs, such asĀ stoicism, Christianity, capitalism, money, etc. This shows just howĀ important connecting with others is for us. In fact, our ability toĀ communicate and connect with others is one of the biggest reasons how weĀ went from being in the middle of the animal food chain to the civilizedĀ and dominant people we are today.
In connection with this desire to connect with others, we are alsoĀ wired to want to love and to be loved. Love is crucial for a childās development. Without adequate love atĀ an early age during sensitive and critical periods, children developĀ attachment issues that can affect them for the rest of their lives. ThisĀ shows just how crucial love is for us. Even when we grow up and becomeĀ teenagers and adults, we are still yearning for belongingness and love.Ā It might be something as simple as having anxiety in school becauseĀ we donāt feel as though we have good friends. It might be theĀ experience of being depressed because a close family member passed awayĀ and we regret not having told them how much we love them. It might beĀ throwing a fun surprise birthday party for a best friend or siblingĀ because of how much we cherish them.
Our desire and need to love and to be loved shows itself in numerousĀ ways throughout our lives. Christopher McCandless wrote this before hisĀ death, āHappiness only real when sharedā. This was coming from a man whoĀ had escaped humanity his whole life and who lived his final days inĀ isolation in the wilderness. Despite pushing people away his entireĀ life, McCandless realized moments before his death that our lives areĀ meaningless if we are not surrounded by loved ones.
Another important form of love is self-love. At the end of day, theĀ only person that will be there with us at every moment of our lives isĀ ourselves. It is therefore crucial to have a good relationship withĀ ourselves. If we canāt love ourselves then how can we expect others toĀ love us? Ayn Rand put this idea beautifully with this quote, āTo say āIĀ love youā one must first know how to say the āIā.ā
- *Curiosity.**
On the evening of 3 August 1492, Columbus departed from EuropeĀ withĀ three ships. The explorer and navigator who completed four voyagesĀ across the Atlantic Ocean is known today as one of the most importantĀ figures in history, opening the way for widespread European explorationĀ and the colonization of the Americas. His expeditions were the firstĀ European contact with the Caribbean, Central America, and South America.
Christopher Columbus, as well as the thousands of others throughoutĀ history who put their lives at risk for the sake of curiosity andĀ exploration, did so because they did not want humanity to be foreverĀ bounded by geography and ignorance. The Apollo Lunar Module EagleĀ landing on the moon on July 20, 1969 is another example of humankindĀ attempting to expend its horizons. History is filled with pioneers andĀ giants from all fields; people like Socrates, Isaac Newton, Leonardo DaĀ Vinci, Martin Luther King Jr, Albert Einstein, Steve Jobs, Elon Musk,Ā etc.
Going out of our comfort zones, taking risks, being creative,Ā expending our horizons, being curious, asking questions, trying newĀ things, and exploring the earth and space is something that is deeplyĀ ingrained in us. Our desire to explore and to be curious is somethingĀ that sets us apart from all other living organisms; itās what makes usĀ unique.
Curiosity doesnāt always have to lead to world-changing events likeĀ stepping on the moon or discovering America. Sometimes, curiosity can beĀ something as simple as sitting down and writing a paper on a topic weĀ find interesting. Curiosity can be the experience of taking a vacationĀ and visiting countries and cultures we have never seen. Curiosity can beĀ the decision to indulge in good habits and to stick to them despite theĀ discomfort they may cause at first. Curiosity can be the process ofĀ starting a business on an idea we are passionate about. Curiosity is allĀ around us, and it is one of the most primal instincts that we have.Ā Letās embrace our curiosity and our desire for exploration, and letāsĀ create lives that we will be proud of.
- *Legacy.**
As mentioned earlier, one of the instincts that motivates us theĀ instinct for survival. We have already talked about two forms ofĀ survival in this article; physical survival and the survival of ourĀ genes and of our specie. There is a third form of survival that controlsĀ much of what we do in life; spiritual survival. Immortality is a desireĀ that is primal to us. We have the gift of consciousness, but also itsĀ curse. We are the only living organism that is able to imagine and thinkĀ about its own death. We donāt want to die. Itās in our nature to desireĀ survival. For that reason, we try to stay healthy and to physicallyĀ survive for as long as can.
However, physical survival is often not enough. We understandĀ consciously that there will come a time when our bodies will no longerĀ be able to function. We understand that we will physically die one day.Ā For that reason, some people turn to religion and God and believe thatĀ if they live a life following certain commandments and behaving inĀ certain ways, then they will go to heaven and live for eternity. OthersĀ understand that the afterlife is something that we donāt fullyĀ understand. Is there an afterlife? What happens after death? DespiteĀ physical death, will our spirits and souls live on?
These are all pertinent questions. We canāt control what happens toĀ us after we die. We can control, however, what we do in this life. WeĀ are not guaranteed the promise of heaven. For that reason, we must turnĀ our attention to extending our lives here and now.
- *Well-being.**
If there is one thing that almost all religions, philosophies, andĀ schools of thought have in common, itās that they aim to reduce suffering and increase well-being.
- Well-being is the experience of health, happiness, and prosperity. It includes having good mental health, good life satisfaction, a sense of meaning or purpose, and ability to manage stress.
The desires to reduce stress, and to experience happiness andĀ prosperity are fundamental to who we are. Throughout much of ourĀ speciesā history, we experienced wars, diseases, natural catastrophes,Ā etc. Christopher Hedges, a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and authorĀ wrote the following, āOf the past 3,400 years,Ā humans have beenĀ entirelyĀ at peace for 268 of them, or just 8 percent of recorded historyā. ThisĀ is a fascinating statistic.
As mentioned earlier, our desires for competition and status, and ourĀ instinct to separate into groups are all part of what makes us human.Ā Despite all the good that has come from those desires, there has alsoĀ been a lot of suffering that has resulted from them. The world canĀ sometimes be a cruel place filled with evil. It is for this reason thatĀ so many religions and philosophies have attempting to figure out ways inĀ which we can reduce suffering.
A large part of well-being has to do with health. Gut health, forĀ example, is strongly correlated with mental health. It is for thisĀ reason that people who have gut problems suffer in life satisfaction. ToĀ be happy, healthy, and to prosper are goals that everyone has. A bigĀ part of making progress towards those goals is combining a lot of theĀ things that have already talked about in prior sections of this article.Ā Are we living healthy lives? Are we constantly trying to learn more andĀ expend our horizons? Do we feel loved and are we surrounded by peopleĀ who cherish us? Are we working on our legacies and on projects thatĀ excite us, or are we wasting our time and potential?
Happiness is not something that should be chased. The more we chaseĀ happiness, the more miserable we will be. There is a great book aboutĀ this topic called āThe Language of Emotionsā. Itās important for us toĀ understand that all emotions are equally important, and that eachĀ emotion serves its own unique purpose. Anger, for example, allows us toĀ create boundaries. Sadness allows us to release energy. Fear lets usĀ know when we are in danger. We need to allow happiness to come as aĀ by-product of a life well-lived, and when it does come, we need let itĀ be free like a bird; it will come and go when it pleases.
Contentment is a far better thing to aim for. When we are content, weĀ are grateful for everything that we have. With that being said, weĀ still try to get a little bit better every day. Mindfulness is alsoĀ important. In todayās world of over-stimulation, instant gratification,Ā and constant comparison, it is easy for us to spend much of our timeĀ either stressing about the future or being depressed about the past.Ā Itās important to take a step back, to be grateful, and to ask ourselvesĀ what we can do today to better our lives and to create good habits.
Finally, we need to understand that well-being is something that isĀ unique to each of us. What motivates me and makes me happy, might beĀ different than what motivates you and makes you happy. It is ourĀ responsibility to have self-awareness, to understand ourselves, and toĀ understand what drives us.
- *How does one live life in the best possible manner?**
Letās look at what some famous thinkers, philosophies, religions, and schools of thought have said about this.
- *Stoicism.**
- Stoicism is a school of philosophy founded by Zeno of Citium in Athens in the early 3rd century BC. It is a philosophy of personal ethics informed by its system of logic and its views on the natural world. According to its teachings, as social beings, the path to meaning and happiness is found in accepting the moment as it presents itself, by not allowing oneself to be controlled by the desire for pleasure or by the fear of pain, by using oneās mind to understand the world and to do oneās part in natureās plan, and by working together and treating others fairly and justly.
Stoicism was the primary philosophy during the time of the RomanĀ Empire. The beautiful thing about Stoicism is that arguably the two mostĀ famous Stoics in history came from completely opposing situations andĀ classes; Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius and Epictetus, a man who was bornĀ a slave. Despite their complete opposing life situations, both MarcusĀ Aurelius and Epictetus wrote and talked about all of the same StoicĀ virtues. In recent years, Stoicism has had a resurgence. MarcusĀ Aureliusā journal āMeditationsā is now one of the most famous books inĀ the world. Furthermore, books from modern writers such as Ryan HolidayĀ have brought Stoicism into the mainstream.
- *Existentialism.**
- Existentialism is a form of philosophical inquiry that explores the problem of human existence and centers on the lived experience of the thinking, feeling, acting individual. In the view of the existentialist, the individualās starting point has been called āthe existential angst,ā a sense of dread, disorientation, confusion, or anxiety in the face of an apparently meaningless or absurd world. Existentialist thinkers frequently explore issues related to the meaning, purpose, and value of human existence.
French philosophers Jean-Paul Sartre and Albert Camus were some of the first and most important existentialists.
- Sartre argued that a central proposition of existentialism is that existence precedes essence, which means that individuals shape themselves by existing and cannot be perceived through preconceived categories, an āessenceā. The actual life of the individuals is what constitutes what could be called their ātrue essenceā instead of an arbitrarily attributed essence others use to define them. Human beings, through their own consciousness, create their own values and determine a meaning to their life.
- *Epicureanism.**
- Epicureanism is a system of philosophy founded around 307 BC based upon the teachings of the ancient Greek philosopher Epicurus. Epicurus believed that the greatest good was to seek modest, sustainable pleasure in the form of tranquility and freedom from fear, and the absence of bodily pain through knowledge of the workings of the world and limiting desires.
- Epicureanism argued that pleasure was the chief good in life. Hence, Epicurus advocated living in such a way as to derive the greatest amount of pleasure possible during oneās lifetime yet doing so moderately in order to avoid the suffering incurred by overindulgence in such pleasure. Emphasis was placed on pleasures of the mind rather than on physical pleasures. Unnecessary and, especially, artificially produced desires were to be suppressed.
- *Objectivism.**
- Objectivism is a philosophical system developed by Russian-American writer Ayn Rand. Rand first expressed Objectivism in her fiction, most notably The Fountainhead (1943) and Atlas Shrugged (1957), and later in non-fiction essays and books. Rand described Objectivism as āthe concept of man as a heroic being, with his own happiness as the moral purpose of his life, with productive achievement as his noblest activity, and reason as his only absoluteā.
I read a large portion of the book āThe Fountainheadā about a yearĀ ago and I enjoyed it. This is one of the passages that has stuck withĀ me.
- āIt is not in the nature of manānor of any living entityāto start out by giving up, by spitting in oneās own face and damning existence; that requires a process of corruption whose rapidity differs from man to man. Some give up at the first touch of pressure; some sell out; some run down by imperceptible degrees and lose their fire, never knowing when or how they lost it. Then all of these vanish in the vast swamp of their elders who tell them persistently that maturity consists of abandoning oneās mind; security, of abandoning oneās values; practicality, of losing self-esteem. Yet a few hold on and move on, knowing that that fire is not to be betrayed, learning how to give it shape, purpose and reality. But whatever their future, at the dawn of their lives, men seek a noble vision of manās nature and of lifeās potential.ā
The reason I like this passage so much is because it communicates inĀ very clear and poetic terms the idea that a desire for meaning and that aĀ desire for improvement and greatness are core elements of who we are.
- *Logotherapy.**
- Logotherapy was developed by neurologist and psychiatrist Viktor Frankl. Rather than power or pleasure, logotherapy is founded upon the belief that striving to find meaning in life is the primary, most powerful motivating and driving force in humans. A short introduction to this system is given in Franklās most famous book, Manās Search for Meaning, in which he outlines how his theories helped him to survive his Holocaust experience and how that experience further developed and reinforced his theories.
- According to Frankl, āWe can discover this meaning in life in three different ways: (1) by creating a work or doing a deed; (2) by experiencing something or encountering someone; and (3) by the attitude we take toward unavoidable sufferingā and that āeverything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of the human freedoms ā to choose oneās attitude in any given set of circumstancesā.
- *My Thoughts.**
As can be seen, there exists many great schools of thoughts andĀ philosophies. What almost all of them have in common is the emphasisĀ they place on pursuing meaning. We live in a world filled with instantĀ gratification, overstimulation, misinformation, censorship, anxiety andĀ fearmongering. Furthermore, we live in a world and in an environmentĀ that pedestalizes short-term harmful pleasure and makes it difficult toĀ delay gratification and pursue meaningful projects and activities. It isĀ our duty as individuals to take responsibility for our lives, to workĀ to better ourselves in incremental fashion, to work to better the world,Ā to try to enjoy the process of life, to love ourselves, and to pursueĀ meaning rather than short-term detrimental pleasure.
As mentioned earlier in his article, the are many existential andĀ philosophical questions that we are not able to answer. Perhaps with theĀ advancement of science we will one day be able to better comprehend theĀ complexities of the Universe. However, for the time being, we mustĀ focus on what we can control as individuals and create frameworks forĀ thinking and living that are helpful for our development.
I believe that a large part of the meaning of life is to liveĀ according to our instincts; maintaining good health, being surrounded byĀ people we love, working on our legacies, acquiring knowledge,Ā transferring our knowledge across generations, procreating, and placingĀ great importance on our well-being. However, itās important to alsoĀ understand that we are not chained by our instincts. Each of us haveĀ something special in us that gives us the ability to think and to beĀ creative. This ability to be flexible, to explore, to try new things, toĀ learn from great thinkers and philosophers, to go outside of ourĀ comfort zones, to take risk, to go against the grain, to be contrarians,Ā to be creative, to think outside the box, and to constantly askĀ questions and find solutions is what makes us special.
Going back to Viktor Frankl, one of my favorite quotes is theĀ following, āBetween stimulus and response there is a space. In thatĀ space is our power to choose our response. In our response lies ourĀ growth and our freedom.ā
I want to emphasize once more that there is meaning in life and thatĀ this meaning can be found all around us. We sometimes see people whoĀ have fallen into nihilism. As someone who once fell into nihilism,Ā perhaps I can shed some light on my experience and on why nihilism canĀ be appealing.
- Nihilism is the belief that all values are baseless and that nothing can be known or communicated. It is often associated with extreme pessimism and a radical skepticism that condemns existence.
The reason I fell into nihilism was because I was going through aĀ difficult time in my life. I had just moved cities and schools, and IĀ had left behind all of my childhood friends and almost everything thatĀ was a constant in my life. This happened when I was a young teenager andĀ it was the worst experience of my life. At the time, I struggledĀ greatly with understanding my emotions and with social anxiety. It tookĀ many months for me to finally come to terms with my situation and to getĀ out of denial. For a long time, I tried to convince myself that myĀ situation was okay and that everything would be alright. I struggledĀ with anxiety, with depression, and with many more problems.
With that being said, the story has a happy ending; I got closure andĀ I now live a life where I am generally happy and motivated. My pointĀ with this entire story is that sometimes our life experiences lead us toĀ philosophies that serve as defence mechanisms. Nihilism, as well as theĀ belief that free will does not exist, allowed me to tell myself, ālifeĀ is meaningless, and I have no control over my situationā. Nihilism wasĀ an escape. The rose-coloured glasses that I had been so accustomed toĀ wearing had turned into dark-coloured glasses. I was seeing the worldĀ through a completely different lens. When we feel that there is noĀ meaning in life, itās probably because something has gone terribly wrongĀ in our lives.
Of course, this is not always the case. There are plenty of nihilistsĀ out there that believe in nihilism because they believe it to be theĀ most logical framework for understanding the world. However, asĀ mentioned earlier in this article, logic is not the only way to go aboutĀ looking for truth and examining topics such as the meaning of life;Ā emotions and instincts are sometimes just as important. An obsessionĀ with logic leads to skepticism. David Hume demonstrated this with ātheĀ problem of inductionā. The problem of induction essentially explainsĀ that nothing in the Universe can be proven for certainty. The problem ofĀ induction, as mind-boggling as it is, demonstrates that the odds of theĀ sun rising tomorrow are equal to the odds of the sun not risingĀ tomorrow. That is the problem when we put logic on a pedestal and donātĀ consider other important factors.
Nihilism is not natural because it looks at the world through aĀ pessimistic and defeatist lens, which is antithetical to how we areĀ wired and to who we are as human beings. No baby is born a nihilist.Ā Going back to Ayn Randās quote, āIt is not in the nature of manānor ofĀ any living entityāto start out by giving up, by spitting in oneās ownĀ face and damning existence; that requires a process of corruption whoseĀ rapidity differs from man to man.ā
With closure, with life experiences, with the process of slowlyĀ improving, with information on how to deal with grief, and withĀ knowledge on life and existence, I went from being a nihilist to theĀ person I am today, the person I have always truly been; someone whoĀ looks at the world with a glass half-full, someone who looks at theĀ world with curiosity, wonder and love, and someone who believes inĀ meaning, pursues meaning, and lives a life of meaning.
To further emphasize my point that life has meaning, and thatĀ striving for meaning is natural and a core part of who we are, letāsĀ look at the science. Psychologist Jordan Peterson talks about theĀ orienting reflex in many of his lectures online. He explains that ourĀ brain produces a very complex internal model of the world, and that ourĀ senses produce a model of the external world. The hippocampus watchesĀ those two models to see if they match, and if they donāt match, then aĀ mismatch signal is created; the orienting reflex.
- The orienting reflex is an organismās immediate response to a change in its environment, when that change is not sudden enough to elicit the startle reflex. The orienting reflex is a reaction to novel or significant stimuli.
The orienting reflex essentially serves as a compass of meaning forĀ us; it is an instrument that guides us through life. It is one of theĀ deepest instincts that we have. The best way to articulate this point isĀ by quoting one of my favorite authors and entrepreneurs, M. J. DeMarco:
- āYour soul will resonate its desires or discontent when faced with quiet or minimal distraction; for example, sleeping, showering, or during a massage. How are you responding to your soulās voice? Is it denied? Ignored? Muzzled with the intense demand of meaningless work? Distracted by a television? Honored?ā
When we are wasting time and when we are indulging in behaviours andĀ activities that lack meaning, that are unnatural, and that areĀ antithetical to growth, our orienting reflex will let us know. It is ourĀ responsibility to listen to our voice, to accept the mistakes thatĀ weāve made, and to take steps towards the right direction. Life isĀ filled with meaning. We must open our eyes and we must embrace thisĀ meaning. Meaning is a core part of who we are, and we must live inĀ accordance to the instincts and purposes that have been explained andĀ analyzed in this article. Furthermore, we must also not followĀ philosophies and ideas blindly and dogmatically, and we must understandĀ that the journey of life and the journey of meaning is unique to each ofĀ us.
This article was a collection of thoughts from some of the greatestĀ thinkers of all time, as well as my own thoughts and my attempt toĀ synthesize all of this information. It is worth noting that someoneĀ might read this article and not agree with everything. That is okay, andĀ it is completely normal. Each of us are at a different stage in ourĀ process of life, and we come from different environments and haveĀ different genetics. Despite the objective nature of some of these ideas,Ā the way I view life and the way you view life will not always be theĀ same. Two of the most important skills one can have are self-awarenessĀ and critical thinking. If we are able to understand ourselves and ourĀ thought process, and if we are able to question ourselves and toĀ question the world, then we have what it takes to grow as human beingsĀ and to tackle difficult questions such as āwhat is the meaning of life?
The Goal is Resonance
The goal is resonance. Nothing is better than resonance. If you have a billion dollars, you are still seeking resonance. If you are well respected, you are still seeking resonance. If you are enlightened, you are still seeking resonance. Even Buddha was seeking resonance. Why else would he share his teachings with others? Resonance is the peak of the human experience.
Artist: London Tsai
Resonance is feeling understood. It is improvization. Banter. A jamming session. Youāre playing music with others and they are building on it.
But isnāt the goal enlightenment? Going to the hills and meditating? The point of meditating in the hills is to feel oneness with humanity; in fact, oneness with everything. You feel a similar oneness when you laugh at a friendās joke or they laugh at yours.
When two people work on a shared project ā a joke, gossip, a product, an essay ā and are able to understand and build on each other, thatās the peak of the human condition.
Resonance is being in flow state but with another person.
To find resonance, you need to create. Any creation is an act of tapping a tuning fork and seeing who resonates. Creation is the risk. Resonance is the reward.
We are alone in our minds. At best, we can describe what we feel using symbols and objects. We feel resonance only when we somehow convert those symbols and objects into something authentic and understandable to another person. Itās magical when it works.
Some seek resonance with people after they die. Hilma af Klint was a Swedish artist who wanted her work to be released twenty years after her death. She sought resonance with people who werenāt born yet.
Creation helps you find friends, partners, and collaborators. Some people build rockets and attract people who resonate with a civilization on Mars. But all creation need not be intimidating. Sending your friend a funny meme counts.
There is at least one person out there who wants this specific version of you ā your current state of mind, feelings, and interests. Creation helps you find that person.